Chocolate Pudding and the Platonic Ideal Archetype

As it happens, national dessert day- which I am hearing about for the first time, has fallen on gray weather, a weather more suited to philosophy books than to fancy. I have never liked Plato. Things as they are manifested cast over me such a spell of delight that I see no point in imagining the Ideal of which they are a projection. It seems to downplay physical life in all its glory, and what is dessert if not that? (And speaking of philosophers, why would dessert day fall on the birthday of Friedrich Nietzsche?)

But it did set me to thinking- what is dessert? What makes something a dessert? I have had desserts that have impressed, desserts that have challenged, desserts that have surprised me. I've loved all of them. But these desserts have answered a purpose. What about a dessert that is its own purpose? I suppose the role of such a dessert is very simply to make us happy. Chocolate pudding answers that purpose very nicely.

Well, that was simple, but it was only half the question. Chocolate pudding may be an ideal dessert, but what makes an ideal chocolate pudding?

Four books, four recipes, one very nice result!

The Cesar's recipe was very heavy on the cream, promising like it says a crema, not a pudding. The first Gourmet cookbook's recipe for old-fashioned chocolate pudding contained just one egg, and its newer edition, the recipe for rich chocolate pudding, contained five yolks (the Maida Heatter recipe- the gold standard- calls for four). Likewise, the two Gourmet recipes called for half the cornstarch in the ration compared to the Maida Heatter- since the recipe has proved foolproof, I stuck with those proportions. Some brown sugar for flavor, cocoa powder and solid chocolate both for depth, and I arrived on paper at a synthesis of the four recipes- then doubled it, because, well, what's the point of having a small amount of chocolate pudding? 

Fresh milk with a little canned milk for extra richness.

Yolks, chocolate, brown and white sugars,
cocoa powder and cornstarch

For several nice portions:

1 liter/ 4 generous C fresh whole milk

250 ml/ 1 C evaporated (not sweetened condensed) milk for extra richness

65 g/ 10 T cornstarch

40 g/ 8 T cocoa powder

100 g/ 1/2 C brown sugar

120 g/ 2/3 C white sugar

6 egg yolks

150 g/. 5 oz dark chocolate

Mix the dry ingredients and just a little if the milk, then add the rest of the canned milk and most of the fresh milk, saving a half a cup for the yolks. Whisk constantly over medium heat until it thickens:

The pudding before it thickens,
the egg yolks ready to be tempered and added,
and some sea salt

When the pudding thickens- which happens all at once it seems- add a little to the yolks to bring them up to temperature, then add back to the pot, stirring all the while over very low heat. Then add the chocolate in pieces:

The chocolate provides enough extra fat for texture (the pastry cream recipe calls for butter to be added at the finish).

Lastly, add a pinch of salt, taste, add vanilla extract, and taste again.

It's worth using a strainer to ensure extra smoothness, and a wide funnel makes it easy to divide into various teacups and jam jars:

Waiting for whipped cream.